Over the weekend, hackers gained access to the X account of the beloved character Elmo and used it to post offensive racist and anti-Semitic threats, along with profane remarks about Jeffrey Epstein. On Monday, Sesame Workshop was actively working to reclaim full control of its Red Character account.
“Unknown hackers have compromised Elmo’s X account, posting derogatory messages, including anti-Semitic and racist content. We are striving to regain complete control of our account,” a spokesman for Sesame Workshop stated on Monday. Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit organization that produces Sesame Street and Elmo.
The account was breached over the weekend, and instead of its usual positive posts, Elmo’s 650,000 followers were confronted with anti-Semitic threats and racist commentary. The account also included profane references to convicted sex trafficker Epstein, revealing additional details about him to the US government, amidst the ongoing debate over the FBI’s findings that Epstein committed suicide. Although these tweets were swiftly deleted, Elmo’s account still hosts a link to a Telegram channel that celebrates the hacking.
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X, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has not yet responded to requests for comment.
Recently, Elmo’s social media accounts have focused on mental health awareness. Last year, the eternally three-and-a-half-year-old red monster prompted responses from Joe Biden and Chance the Rapper with a simple check-in: “Elmo is just checking in! What is everyone doing?”
X has faced ongoing challenges in safeguarding high-profile accounts, which can cause significant harm with a single tweet. Last year, various British MPs and international entities experienced similar breaches, with their accounts being used to mock cryptocurrency.
Source: www.theguardian.com
